This invention pertains to display apparatus, and more particularly to a picture frame with quick change display capabilities.
Conventional picture frames are constructed with a backing sheet to hold the picture display flat against the transparent pane of glass. In order to change the display, the backing sheet needs to be removed before a new display can be inserted. Very often this necessitates the removal of the frame from its mount. Other picture frames may provide a rigid backing plate which presses the picture against the transparent glass. The backing plates are held to the walls of the frame by a press fit. These display frames, as well, require some disassembly of the picture frame components in order to remove the current display picture to replace it with a newer picture. Still other picture frames utilize leaf springs to hold the picture against the glass. In order to prevent damage to the display picture, these frames as well require a backing sheet to prevent the leaf spring from wearing the display picture at its pressure points.
In view of the shortcomings of existing picture frames, there is a need for improvements which allow the removal of display pictures from a frame without the additional disassembly or removal of a backing sheet or plate.
The present invention discloses a display apparatus for a display having a first member with four sides. The display apparatus includes a transparent restraining member mounted centrally within the four sides of the first member. The display apparatus includes a second member having four sides and a back, wherein the first and second member are rotatably interconnected, such that the first member articulates between a first position and a second position. The display apparatus includes holding devices for holding the display as the first member moves from the first to the second position and back to the first position. The display apparatus includes at least one biasing device which exerts an urging pressure for urging the display against the transparent restraining member when the first member is in the first position. The biasing device is preferably a compressible material with memory. The material lies adjacent to the display, distributing the urging pressure along a continuous portion of the display while the first member is in the closed position. The display apparatus also includes at least one retainer for retaining the biasing device within the second member.
In the preferred embodiment of a display apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention, the urging pressure is evenly applied along a portion of the display from substantially one edge to the other edge. The retainer forms a portion of a storage construct. There is also a second biasing device, and a second retainer, the retainer forming a portion of a storage construct. The holding device of the preferred embodiment includes a first and a second spring loaded gripper for holding the display in the first member without the use of a backing sheet while the first member moves from a first closed position to a second open position. The preferred embodiment further uses a foam rubber-like material with a nondamaging contact surface as a first and second biasing device.
By the use of a display apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention, changing pictures is accomplished without disassembly of the picture frame components and without the need to remove the frame from its mount. In addition, the display apparatus of the present invention urges a picture against the glass pane without causing damage to the display. One further advantage of the display apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention inheres in its ability to form storage constructs.